Belville collector streets a no-go

Published: Monday, May 20, 2013 at 8:39 a.m.

Last Modified: Monday, May 20, 2013 at 8:39 a.m.

Collector streets will likely not be coming to Belville, but Brunswick County's and Leland's interest in them means that the plan is still kicking.

Belville's planning board held a public hearing about the plan in early May and recommended that the town board of commissioners not adopt it, based on opposition they'd heard from residents, particularly in the Olde Towne neighborhood. The purpose of a collector street network is to make connections between neighborhoods that relieve traffic on increasingly crowded thoroughfares.

"The general consensus of the townspeople is they like the idea of having cul-de-sacs. They like the idea of children playing on the street. They do not want more traffic," said Joe Breault, one of the town's commissioners.

While Belville is opposed to collector streets, Brunswick County and Leland planning boards both agreed to pass it on to their governing bodies for consideration.

Part of Leland's motivation is the number of gated and closed-off neighborhoods that make up much of the town.

"We think it's a good plan. It's needed," said David Hollis, Leland's town manager. "There's a lot of gated communities that force people out onto main roads that contribute to congestion. This type of plan, if it's implemented, will reduce some of that."

Suraiya Rashid, the Wilmington Metropolitan Planning Organization's associate transportation planner who is heading up the project, said she hopes to present at Belville, Brunswick County, Leland and Navassa regular meetings in June and July before bringing the plan to the Transportation Advisory Committee for adoption in August.

A collector street plan is designed to tie residential streets to major roads while simultaneously supporting bicycle and pedestrian transportation. In North Brunswick's case, part of the intent was to give people who live in subdivisions off N.C. 133 and U.S. 17 another way to leave their neighborhoods.

Speed limits on collector streets are usually set at 25 or 30 mph in residential areas.

While the plans don't mean any immediate changes for local residents, they do provide a map for how federal and state transportation dollars should be spent in the region in the near future. A similar plan for Wilmington was scrapped in November 2012 after community members spoke out against it.

Belville officials and residents have concerns similar to those in some established Wilmington neighborhoods. They think a collector street plan could be effective in planning for future development, but it's disruptive for existing communities. Belville, though, has nowhere to grow.

"If you look at the unurbanized areas in the county, it's a great plan," Breault said. "We're locked on three sides by Leland and the fourth side by the river. We just feel it perhaps behooves the surrounding communities to incorporate it more than it behooves us."

Rashid added that she will ask Belville's board on Monday if the members want to be exempted from the plan entirely. If they choose that option, Belville's residents will not be affected by the plan at all, but the town also won't receive any of the future transportation funding that could come as part of it.

<p>Collector streets will likely not be coming to Belville, but Brunswick County's and <a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/topic9971"><b>Leland</b></a>'s interest in them means that the plan is still kicking.</p><p>Belville's planning board held a public hearing about the plan in early May and recommended that the town board of commissioners not adopt it, based on opposition they'd heard from residents, particularly in the Olde Towne neighborhood. The purpose of a collector street network is to make connections between neighborhoods that relieve traffic on increasingly crowded thoroughfares.</p><p>"The general consensus of the townspeople is they like the idea of having cul-de-sacs. They like the idea of children playing on the street. They do not want more traffic," said Joe Breault, one of the town's commissioners. </p><p>While Belville is opposed to collector streets, Brunswick County and Leland planning boards both agreed to pass it on to their governing bodies for consideration.</p><p>Part of Leland's motivation is the number of gated and closed-off neighborhoods that make up much of the town.</p><p>"We think it's a good plan. It's needed," said David Hollis, Leland's town manager. "There's a lot of gated communities that force people out onto main roads that contribute to congestion. This type of plan, if it's implemented, will reduce some of that."</p><p>Suraiya Rashid, the Wilmington Metropolitan Planning Organization's associate transportation planner who is heading up the project, said she hopes to present at Belville, Brunswick County, Leland and Navassa regular meetings in June and July before bringing the plan to the Transportation Advisory Committee for adoption in August.</p><p>A collector street plan is designed to tie residential streets to major roads while simultaneously supporting bicycle and pedestrian transportation. In North Brunswick's case, part of the intent was to give people who live in subdivisions off N.C. 133 and U.S. 17 another way to leave their neighborhoods.</p><p>Speed limits on collector streets are usually set at 25 or 30 mph in residential areas.</p><p>While the plans don't mean any immediate changes for local residents, they do provide a map for how federal and state transportation dollars should be spent in the region in the near future. A similar plan for Wilmington was scrapped in November 2012 after community members spoke out against it.</p><p>Belville officials and residents have concerns similar to those in some established Wilmington neighborhoods. They think a collector street plan could be effective in planning for future development, but it's disruptive for existing communities. Belville, though, has nowhere to grow.</p><p>"If you look at the unurbanized areas in the county, it's a great plan," Breault said. "We're locked on three sides by Leland and the fourth side by the river. We just feel it perhaps behooves the surrounding communities to incorporate it more than it behooves us."</p><p>Rashid added that she will ask Belville's board on Monday if the members want to be exempted from the plan entirely. If they choose that option, Belville's residents will not be affected by the plan at all, but the town also won't receive any of the future transportation funding that could come as part of it.</p><p>Adam Wagner: 343-2096</p><p><a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/news41"><b>Twitter</b></a>: @adamwagner1990</p>